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Charith Asalanka 91, Dhananjaya de Silva fifty set Afghanistan 269 in first ODI

Published

3 years ago

2023/06/2

Priyan

Charith Asalanka and Dhananjaya de Silva added 99 for the fifth wicket (Cricinfo)

Afghanistan’s seamers struck with the new ball, and closed out the innings efficiently with the old one, but Charith Asalanka’s 91 and Dhananjaya de Silva’s 51 pushed Sri Lanka to a competitive total. Their 268 all out left one ball unused, as four wickets fell in the last two overs of the innings.

Fazalhaq Farooqi made the first incisions, dismissing opener Dimuth Karunaratne and No. 3 Kusal Mendis inside the first nine overs, though he would go on to bowl some expensive spells later, finishing with an economy rate of 6.44. Fareed Ahmad also took two wickets – that of Angelo Mathews in the 15th over, and of debutant Dushan Hemantha at the death.

Everyone else – Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad, Mohammad Nabi, and Azmatullah Omarzai – took one wicket apiece. While Noor went for runs, Mujeeb and Nabi kept a lid on the scoring through Sri Lanka’s middle overs. Omarzai bowled the last over, in which Sri Lanka mustered only four runs but lost three wickets – two of them to run-outs.

Having come to the crease at 61 for 3, Asalanka had a jittery start. He survived a caught-behind review off the sixth ball he faced, before getting into his work, hitting three fours off successive overs. Asalanka was proactive – though not quite aggressive – by picking up singles as he awaited Afghanistan’s errors.

When Dhananjaya joined him at the other end, he too batted at a similar tempo. The early fall of wickets – Sri Lanka had been 84 for 4 when these two came together – did not allow either batter to free his arms. They progressed without any fuss through the middle overs – Asalanka prospered through midwicket and cover, while Dhananjaya found boundaries behind square on the off side, though he also played the legside flick effectively.

Asalanka got to his fifty with consecutive fours off Mujeeb in the 36th over, reaching the milestone off the 57th ball he faced. Dhananjaya got there next over, off his 56th ball. But he was soon bowled by the canny Nabi, who slid one quickly underneath the batter’s attempted sweep shot.

The pair’s 99-run stand had delivered Sri Lanka to the doorstep of the death overs, but Asalanka had only stinting support once Dhananjaya fell at the start of the 38th over. Dasun Shanaka managed only 17, before Noor – his Gujarat Titans team-mate at the IPL – sneaked one into his off stump. Hemantha then struck the only six of the innings – that came as late as the penultimate over – high over cow corner, but was out for 22 off 20 balls.

Two overs out, Sri Lanka were 256 for 6, with a total of 280 not out of reach. But they fell meekly after that, Asalanka getting himself run-out attempting to take a bye to start the final over, after Hemantha had holed out to mid-off three balls earlier.

Brief scores (Innings break) :

Sri Lanka 268 (Asalanka 91, Dhananjaya 51, Fareed 2-43) vs Afghanistan

(Cricinfo)

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Feroza, Amin, Sandhu shine as Pakistan go 1-0 up against Sri Lanka

Published

9 hours ago

2026/07/23

Priyan

Gull Feroza scored her fourth successive ODI half-century in Pakistan's win over Sri Lanka

Half-centuries from Gull Feroza and Sidra Amin helped Pakistan start their tour of Sri Lanka on a winning note. After restricting Sri Lanka to 210 for 9, thanks to Nashra Sandhu’s 3 for 42, Pakistan got home with five wickets and seven overs to spare in the first woman’s ODI in Hambantota.

Vishmi Gunaratne, reunited with captain chamari Athapaththu at the top of the order, helped Sri Lanka lay a solid foundation after they opted to bat. The hosts raced to 31 without loss in the first five overs. Gunaratne and Athapaththu soon brought up their fifth fifty-run partnership in ODIs, the most by an opening pair for Sri Lanka.

Once spin came on, the scoring slowed down. Gunaratne was the first to depart when she became Sandhu’s first victim. Athapaththu and Hasini Perera then added 53 for the second wicket before the Sri Lanka captain was bowled by Sandhu. Pakistan applied the squeeze when Sri Lanka were 109 for 2 in the 24th over. The only notable stand for Sri Lanka thereon was between Nilakshika Silva and Kavisha Dilhari, who added 42 for the fifth wicket. But Sri Lanka’s final surge never came and they lost 5 for 32 in the last seven overs to be restricted to a below-par total.

Pakistan hardly broke a sweat in their chase. Feroza struck her fourth successive ODI half-century. She was rapid in the first powerplay, and was the aggressor in the 58-run opening partnership with Sadar Shamas. Feroza then added 90 for the second wicket with Amin, who batted steadily. Feroza eventually fell for a breezy 77-ball 78 while Amin scored 57 off 94 before being dismissed, with victory in sight.

The win was Pakistan’s fifth consecutive ODI win, which put them second on the ICC Women’s Championship points table.

Scores:

Pakistan Women 211 for 5 in 43 overs (Gull Feroza 78, Sidra Amin 57; Kavisha Dilhari 2-37) beat Sri Lanka Women 210 for 9 in 50 overs (Nilakshika Silva 46, Chamari Athapaththu 46; Nashra Sandhu 3-42, Tasmia Rubab 2-34) by five wickets

(CRICINFO)

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Taskin Ahmed withdraws from LPL to prepare for Australia tour

Published

15 hours ago

2026/07/23

Priyan

Taskin was supposed to play for Jaffna Kings [Cricbuzz]

Bangladesh pacer Taskin Ahmed said on Wednesday (July 22) that he has withdrawn from the Lanka Premier League (LPL) to prepare for the upcoming Test tour of Australia. Taskin, who arrived in Dhaka with the team from Zimbabwe, was supposed to head to Sri Lanka due to play for Jaffna Kings in the tournament.

Bangladesh are scheduled to depart in August for the all-important Australia tour where they will play a two-Test series down under for the first time since 2003.

Taskin had initially obtained a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) to feature in the tournament and was expected to skip the T20I series against Zimbabwe. However, he stayed back in Zimbabwe for the series after Mustafizur Rahman was ruled out due to injury.

“Yeah, I had withdrawn myself from LPL and it is mainly for Australia Test series preparation,” Taskin told Cricbuzz. “We played six back-to-back matches in Zimbabwe, maybe I would have got four matches there (in LPL). After my stint there (in LPL) if I return home and immediately go to Australia my Test match preparation would be hampered,” he said.

“Despite a little loss I thought it’s okay as Australia series won’t come around often.That’s why I took the decision and so I pulled out from the LPL even after having the NOC,” he added.

The Bangladesh team management are also waiting anxiously on Nahid Rana after he sustained a left side strain during the second T20I against Zimbabwe. The young fast bowler was unable to complete his spell. Rana, who arrived earlier in the day, will undergo scans to determine the extent of the injury.

Meanwhile, left-arm pacer Shoriful Islam is undergoing rehabilitation after suffering a hamstring injury during the Zimbabwe tour. If his rehabilitation progresses as planned, he will be in contention for the opening Test as a standard recovery period for such an injury is around three weeks.

The two Test matches, part of the ongoing World Test Championship cycle, will be played in Darwin (August 13-17) and Mackay (August 22-26).

[Cricbuzzz]

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Sri Lanka edge Qatar in Davis Cup opener

Published

19 hours ago

2026/07/23

Priyan

Thehan Wijemanne ( Pix by Kamal Wanniarachchi)

Hosts Sri Lanka made a winning start to their Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Group IV campaign, edging out Qatar 2-1 in a closely contested opening-day tie at the Sri Lanka Tennis Association courts in Colombo on Wednesday.

The visitors struck first when Mubarak Alharrasi defeated Sri Lanka’s Apna Perera 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 in a hard-fought opening singles encounter, giving Qatar an early 1-0 lead.

Sri Lanka bounced back in the second singles as Thehan Wijemanne produced a spirited comeback to overcome Mossa Alharrasi 3-6, 6-4, 6-4. After dropping the opening set, Wijemanne showed great composure to win the next two sets and level the tie at 1-1.

The decisive doubles match proved to be a tense affair, with Apna Perera returning to partner Saha Kapilasena. The Sri Lankan duo held their nerve in two tie-breaks to defeat Jabar Al Mutawan and Mossa Alharrasi 7-6, 7-6, sealing the tie 2-1 for the hosts.

Sri Lanka’s ability to recover from the opening singles defeat highlighted the team’s resilience as Wijemanne’s comeback victory and the doubles pair’s clutch performance ensured a successful start to their campaign. The hosts will now look to build on the opening-day victory as they continue their quest for promotion in the Asia/Oceania Group IV competition.